Strange Horizons, 1 March 2004

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"For Now It's Eight O'Clock" by Alex Irvine

In "For Now It's Eight O'Clock", Alex Irvine examines a community terrorized by Wee Willie Winkie; who steals children that aren't in their beds at eight o'clock sharp.  While most parents cower in their homes, Jeff enlists the aid of his neighbor to rescue his daughter from Willie's clutches.

The story provides a refreshing twist on the Pied Piper theme, and will resonate with parents who fight the 'eight o'clock bedtime' wars.  Though the prose could have been tighter, Alex Irvine gets full credit for using the word exsanguinated in a most creative manner.